Four Softball Players Named To Capital One Academic All-District Team
Four softball student-athletes from the South Atlantic Conference have been named to the Capital One Academic All-District team, as announced by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
Anderson University third baseman Emily Monteith and Newberry College utility player Chelsie Hilbourn have been named to the All-District III first team. Wingate University pitcher Allison Smith was named to the All-District III second team. Tusculum College senior second baseman Taylor MacDonald was selected to the All-District IV second team.
Selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America, the teams recognize the nation's top student-athletes for their combined performance on the field and in the classroom.
In order to earn recognition, a student-athlete must be a starter or important reserve with at least a 3.30 cumulative grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) at his/her current institution and are voted upon by CoSIDA members. They must have reached sophomore athletic and academic standing and must have completed at least one full academic year at their respective institution.
As first-team all-district selection, Monteith and Hilbourn are eligible for consideration nationally as an academic All-American.
District III (college division) includes all non-NCAA Division I schools (Division II, III and NAIA) in Florida, Georgia, Virginia and North and South Carolina.
District IV (college division) includes all non-NCAA Division I colleges and universities from Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Ohio and Michigan.
Since the program's inception in 1952, CoSIDA has bestowed Academic All-America honors on more than 14,000 student-athletes in Divisions I, II, III and NAIA, covering all NCAA championship sports.
Anderson
For the second consecutive year, Anderson University softball's stellar third baseman Emily Monteith has been named to the Capital One Academic All-District III first team.
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Emily Monteith |
Monteith, a native of Clover, S.C., sported a perfect 4.0 grade point average, while majoring in kinesiology. She played in all 43 games last season and ranked sixth in the South Atlantic Conference in runs scored, while leading the Trojans in runs scored. She was second on the squad with 44 hits on the season and boasted a .324 batting average.
The 5-6 senior was third on the team in home runs (8), and fourth in slugging percentage (.559) and on-base percentage (.387). Monteith led the team in stolen bases, going 6-for-7 on the season. She opened the season with a seven-game hitting streak and also posted a six-game and a pair of four-game hitting streaks.
She was a 2010 CoSIDA first-team academic all-district selection after earning second-team all-conference and earned Conference Carolinas' Player of the Week accolades during the 2010 season. As a junior she ranked second in the conference in home runs and RBI, tied for second in total bases and was sixth in the league in runs scored.
Monteith was a three-time NFCA Scholar-Athlete and was a Dean's List honoree five times at Anderson.
Newberry
Newberry College senior softball player Chelsie Hilbourn (Loris, S.C.) has been named a Capital One Academic All-District III First Team member.
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Chelsie Hilbourn |
Hilbourn will graduate summa cum laude with a perfect 4.00 grade point average with a major in sports management in Saturday's commencement exercises, and was named to the College's Bachman Honor Society at the annual awards convocation. She was a second team Academic All-District III honoree in 2010.
Hilbourn was also a standout on the diamond, earning second team all-South Atlantic Conference honors as a utility player this season, starting in all 45 games and putting up a team-high .338 batting average. Hilbourn also led Newberry in hits (48), runs (33), RBIs (33) and stolen bases where she was a perfect 15-for-15 on the season. In conference games only, Hilbourn brought her average up to .365 and led the team once again in runs (11), hits (23), RBIs (12) and stolen bases (9).
Wingate
Wingate University senior right-handed pitcher Allison Smith (Daleville, Va.) has been named to the 2011 Capital One Academic All-District III softball second team (college division). A graduate of Lord Botetourt High School, Smith is a repeat performer. She was named to the Academic All-District III first team in 2010.
This season, Smith is 21-6 overall with a 1.50 ERA, ranking third in the conference in wins and ERA. The South Atlantic Conference coaches voted her second team All-SAC. Her teammates named her Wingate's MVP. In addition, Smith was named the SAC Scholar-Athlete Award winner for softball.
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Allison Smith |
On the SAC charts, Smith's 164 strikeouts rank fourth in the league. She is fifth in the SAC with her seven shutouts. She has allowed two earned runs or fewer in 24 of her 32 appearances. Smith has struck out at least seven batters nine times, while hitting double digits three times. She struck out 12 in the nine-inning win at Newberry. Smith currently ranks second on Wingate's all-time list in career ERA and third in strikeouts.
Smith has been named SAC Pitcher of the Week eight times during her career and led the conference in strikeouts per game and lowest ERA in 2009. In 2010, she became only the second pitcher in Wingate fast-pitch history to throw a no-hitter. In addition to her CoSIDA Academic All-District laurels, she was named an All-American Scholar-Athlete by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) in 2009 and 2010.
In the classroom, Smith has a 3.80 GPA. She is a Communication major with a Journalism emphasis. Smith has served as a staff writer, copy editor and assistant sports editor for The Weekly Triangle, Wingate's campus newspaper. She also has been active in UCAN, a community service club with an emphasis on hunger, homelessness, tutoring and mentoring. Smith has participated in canned food drives, Angel Tree and Halloween fairs. As a member of the Wingate Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, she has helped raise money for Make-A-Wish and the baseball clubhouse fund-raising project.
"Allison has been a tremendous role model and example for our program and all student-athletes on our campus," Wingate head coach Michelle Caddigan says. "I am honored she has been a member of our program and grateful for the contributions she has made on and off the field. She will be sorely missed, but I look forward to watching her continued success in graduate school and as a graduate assistant in our athletic department."
Tusculum
Tusculum College senior second baseman Taylor MacDonald has been selected to the Capital One Academic All-District IV College Division Softball team. She is the first Pioneer softball player to earn CoSIDA Academic All-District recognition in the program's history.
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Taylor MacDonald |
MacDonald was a second-team selection as an infielder after leading the Pioneers to their best record (32-17) since joining NCAA Division II for the 1999 season. Along the way, the Pioneers defeated three nationally-ranked teams, including currently top-ranked Alabama-Huntsville, North Georgia and California (Pa.), posted a 14-game winning streak and finished fourth in the South Atlantic Conference with an 11-7 league mark.
A second-team All-SAC honoree and team Most Valuable Player, MacDonald hit .314 and led the team with 48 hits and 28 runs scored. She added 10 doubles, three triples, a home run and 15 runs batted in while starting all 49 games at second base.
MacDonald, who also had the team's longest hitting streak of the season at 10 games, drew 20 walks for a team-leading .403 on-base percentage and stole five bases. In the field, she made just four errors in 183 chances for a .978 fielding percentage and was charged with just one miscue in the Pioneers' final 28 games.
She finished her career with a .271 batting average, two home runs and 44 runs batted in while playing 177 games. MacDonald scored 95 runs, posted 140 hits, including 27 doubles and seven triples, and drew 65 walks. She stole 24 bases and compiled a .959 fielding percentage over 680 chances in the field.
Academically, MacDonald is an elementary education major with a 3.86 cumulative grade-point average. She is a member of the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll, the Tusculum College Athletic Director's Honor Roll and the Dean's List, as well as the Charles Oliver Gray Honors List.
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